£84m for AI

In her keynote speech to the Innovate UK Conference in Birmingham on 8 November, Business Minister Claire Perry MP announced £84 million of funding for artificial intelligence and robotics research and smart energy innovation:

Four new research hubs will develop robotic technology to improve safety in off-shore wind and nuclear energy

£68 million from the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund for artificial intelligence and robotics research announced

Government also commits to £16 million worth of funding for smart energy systems innovation

More than £68 million of investment from the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund for robotics and artificial intelligence projects aimed at improving safety in extreme environments has been announced by the government.

This investment will develop robots and artificial intelligence able to take on jobs in the freezing depths of the North Sea, dealing with extreme environments in the process of nuclear energy production, the hostile vacuum of space, and heat of deep mining.

In her keynote speech to the Innovate UK Conference in Birmingham, Ms Perry set out how British experts and innovators are leading the world in this new sector, receiving support from the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund.

The government is working with business and academia in order to encourage investment in robotics and artificial intelligence – a priority area of the Industrial Strategy.

Almost £45 million will be used to set up four new research hubs based at the University of Manchester, University of Birmingham, University of Surrey and Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh.

The centres of excellence, managed by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), will be responsible for developing robotic technology to enable safer working environments in space and deep mining and the hazardous and harsh environments of nuclear energy and off-shore wind.